Nanutarra, Western Australia
Nanutarra is a locality in Western Australia adjacent to the point at which the North West Coastal Highway passes over the Ashburton river. It is also near the turn-off for State Route 136 to Paraburdoo and Tom Price. It is south of the Onslow turn-off in the Cane River conservation park where it is on either side of the highway. The name 'Nanutarra' originated from an Aboriginal word for a bulrush growing in the area.
History
The Ashburton River, and thus the location of the current locality was discovered in 1861 by Francis Gregory, the President of the Royal Geographical Society.The territory of the town was initially used as grazing land in the 1877 by a man known as Harry Highman, who later constructed the Nanutarra Station in 1879.
Thanks to Highman's intervention, the area flourished in sheep hearding, with up to 45,000 sheep being present in the locality, attracting neighbouring eyes. He would die in 1917.
In the year 1965 Frank Baxter decided to builtd the "Nanutarra Roadhouse" just three kilometres from the original Nanutarra homestead, thus becoming the main source of revenue for the entire area. The structure is still functioning today.
In 2005 Nanutarra was given permanent status on the Western Australian Register of Heritage Places.
In 2024, the PKKP Aboriginal Corporation had acquired the historic Nanutarra Homestead.
Etymology
The name is related to the locality, the pastoral lease Nanutarra Station, the bridge over the Ashburton river, the mine and the roadhouse.Due to its isolation from other localities, it is a reference point to issues along the North West Coastal Highway from some distance in either direction.